Pew survey gives artists a voice

The entertainment industry should sit up and take notice. According to a new …

The debate on file sharing and copyrights in the media and courtroom has been dominated by file sharing users, consumer groups, and entertainment industry representatives. Other than a few vocal artists, individuals whose works are being shared on the Internet have had little say in the matter. That was until now. Over the weekend, the Pew Internet & American Life Project released a report on artists' and musicians' view of the Internet and how it impacts the ability to create, promote, and sell their work. Not surprisingly, the report shows that their view of file sharing falls somewhere in the middle of extreme positions held by the usual suspects.

The first large-scale surveys of the internet?s impact on artists and musicians reveal that they are embracing the Web as a tool to improve how they make, market, and sell their creative works. They eagerly welcome new opportunities that are provided by digital technology and the internet.

At the same time, they believe that unauthorized online file sharing is wrong and that current copyright laws are appropriate, though there are some major divisions among them about what constitutes appropriate copying and sharing of digital files. Their overall judgment is that unauthorized online file-sharing does not pose a major threat to creative industries: Two-thirds of artists say peer-to-peer file sharing poses a minor threat or no threat at all to them.

Across the board, among those who are both successful and struggling, the artists and musicians we surveyed are more likely to say that the internet has made it possible for them to make more money from their art than they are to say it has made it harder to protect their work from piracy or unlawful use.

Media outlets will be pickingapart the data for weeks, but it seems clear the artists are concerned how best to create, promote, and profit from their works while being sensitive to the buying public's wants and needs. Some of these views stand in stark contrast to hard line positions that entertainment industry organizations have taken on file sharing and copyright issues. The same organizations that claim to represent the voices contained in this survey. Until the entertainment industry starts to involve artists in decision-making processes, it will be tough to dispel the view that industry actions are solely meant to protect profits and outdated business models at the expense of artists. Maybe this study will be the first step in getting their voices heard in entertainment industry boardrooms.